What is Chai Elul’s Personal Message to Us? Why Was This Day Kept Secret for Many Years? Why Did the Baal Shem Tov Sign His Name “Yisroel From Okup” When He Was Born in Tlust? What Do We Know About the Thirty-Six Hidden Tzaddikim? Does the “King in the Field” Mean That Elul Impacts Us Even if We Don’t Improve Our Behavior? How Do We Justify Tragedies in This Month of Compassion? Are Our Prayers Being Answered?
MyLife: Chassidus Applied Episode 606 with Rabbi Simon Jacobson
Sunday, August 30, 2026 / 17 Elul 5786 – 8:00-9:00PM ET
Podcast YouTube Chassidusapplied.com
The topics in this week’s 606th episode of the highly acclaimed MyLife: Chassidus Applied series, with Rabbi Simon Jacobson, will include:
What is Chai Elul’s Personal Message to Us?
- Who revealed to us that this day is the birthday of the Baal Shem Tov and the Alter Rebbe?
- Why was it kept secret for many years?
- What is the meaning of the statement that Chai Elul infuses chayus into the entire month of Elul?
- What is the source that the last twelve days of this month correspond to the twelve months of the year? And what is the connection with Chai Elul?
- Why did the Baal Shem Tov sign his name “Yisroel from Okup” when he was born in Tlust?
- What is the story about the Baal Shem Tov’s previous reincarnation?
- What is the significance of the Alter Rebbe being a neshama chadasha? Why does such a neshama need 24 months of gestation?
- Who was Achiya HaShiloni, the teacher of the Baal Shem Tov, and what is their connection?
- What do we know about the thirty-six hidden tzaddikim?
- What were the two last things the Baal Shem Tov heard from his father, and how did that shape him and the philosophy of Chassidus?
- Why was the Baal Shem Tov not arrested for spreading Chassidus like the Alter Rebbe?
- What is the connection with the establishment of Yeshivas Tomchei Temimim?
- Do we know why the cornerstone of 770’s expansion was laid on the 17th of Elul?
- Why do they say that if you don’t believe Baal Shem Tov stories you are an apikores and if you do believe them, you are a fool?
- Did the Baal Shem Tov banish demons from this earth?
13 Elul
- Why did the Frierdiker Rebbe get married on a Friday, as was customary then, but today we don’t usually have weddings on a Friday?
Elul
- Does the “king in the field” mean that Elul impacts us even if we don’t improve our behavior?
- And does this power exist all year round?
- How do we reconcile the explanation of ani l’dodi v’dodi li with the Frierdiker Rebbe’s interpretation that it refers to businesspeople and scholars?
- How do we justify tragedies in this month of compassion?
- Why are our prayers not being answered?
Thank you
MyLife: Chassidus Applied is a weekly video webcast candidly answering questions from the public about all life matters and challenges, covering the entire spectrum of human experience. This hour-long dose of insights, broadcast live every Sunday night 8-9PM ET, is meant to provide people with inspired guidance and direction, empowering them to deal with any issue they may face.
In what has become a staple in so many people’s lives, MyLife: Chassidus Applied has provoked a significant reaction from the community, with thousands of people viewing each live broadcast and hundreds of questions pouring in week after week. At the root of every question and personal challenge tackled by the series is the overarching question: Does Judaism have the answers to my personal dilemmas?
MyLife demonstrates how Chassidus provides us with a comprehensive blueprint of the human psyche as a microcosm of the cosmos, and offers us all the guidance we need to live the healthiest possible life and build nurturing homes and families, bringing up the healthiest possible children, emotionally, psychologically and spiritually. MyLife is brought to you by the Meaningful Life Center as a public service, free of charge.
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